Investigation Discovery (ID), America’s leading mystery and suspense network, announced today the premiere of five sensational new series and the return of two sophomore series just in time for viewers to enjoy the lazy days of summer. The number one cable network for women, ID’s electrifying mid-summer programming slate kicks off with the premiere of MURDER BY NUMBERS (Wednesday, July 12 at 10/9c), a suspenseful new series that follows police on a wild investigation into one shocking crime with multiple victims. Next on ID’s summer docket is GONE (Monday, July 24 at 9/8c), featuring true stories of individuals who disappear without a trace, leaving their loved ones a trail of secrets they must uncover to discover the missing persons’ whereabouts.

In an earlier article, I wrote about Frank Sinatra and his underworld connections. Fascinated by Sinatra’s charisma and an admirer of his work I bought J. Randy Taraborrelli’s book Sinatra Behind the Legend. Despite the fact that I’m only midway through I have to admit Sinatra lived an inspiring life. Placing the mob aspect on hold for now, Sinatra himself was brazen in a lot of ways. He stood up for injustices when there was no benefit in doing so, took charge of his career all while making bold strides along the way. The fact is, with every step Sinatra could’ve been risking more than his reputation, but his career.

For example “The House I Lived In” a short film made in 1945 starring Sinatra was a valiant move on his behalf against racism and while it may be corny by today’s standards, I thought it was courageous! The Rat Pack is another example of Sinatra’s gutsy personality. I first became a fan of The Rat Pack back in 2000 BC (before children) and actually I was attracted to the groups moxie more than anything.

A crime spree in Little Rock, Arkansas, this month included several drive-by shootings followed by gunfire at a nightclub a mile from the state Capitol building. Twenty-eight people were injured in the overnight shooting at the Power Ultra Lounge.

After the nightclub shooting, the governor expressed concern over the intensifying “crime problem” in Little Rock, the largest city in Arkansas, located in the center of the state. In response, the governor formed a multiagency law enforcement task force to address the issue.

Those familiar with the Natural State’s history will tell you that this is far from the first time that Central Arkansas has made news for its “crime problem.”

The basis of my understanding about mob life originated with Selwyn Raab. Growing up I originally like watching documentaries where he gave commentary to particular mob events or life. When I read his book Five Families: The Rise, Decline and Resurgence of Americas Most Powerful Mafia Families I have to admit I was pretty impressed. The way Raab recounted the history of the Gambino, Genovese, Lucchese, Colombo and Bonanno family in such massive detail the reader is given a full understanding of what the mob truly represents… from Raab’s point of view at least. The positives about this book is its knowledge. It’s extremely informative! Everything you will ever want to know about the mob from its roots back in Sicily to its takeover in New York is included. Raab gives you the complete back story of all the headlines and all the documentaries about the American mob.

Though there is plenty of speculation, no one has uncovered the definitive answer to either question.

A lot of people you come across on a day-to-day basis know the basics of the Hoffa saga, that he was a corrupt, mobbed-up ex-Teamsters head who disappeared in the summer of 1975, presumably killed by underworld figures.

After serving time in prison, and already into his early 60s, Hoffa was trying to regain power in the union when he vanished.

For 40-plus years the national running joke has been that Hoffa’s remains were buried in Giants Stadium in New Jersey just west of New York City.

From time to time, you’ll still hear late-night comedians joke about that, even though the stadium was demolished seven years ago, and nothing ever turned up.

New York City was in panic for more than a year in the late ‘70s while a serial killer armed with a .44 caliber gun taunted law enforcement, toyed with the media and played a fatal game of cat and mouse with its residents. Now, on the 40th anniversary of the capture of David Berkowitz, Investigation Discovery (ID) premieres the documentary special SON OF SAM: THE HUNT FOR A KILLER, tracing the parallel stories of a serial killer’s unsuspecting victims and the dedicated detectives who worked tirelessly to capture the madman who left six young people dead, seven wounded, and a city in chaos. Through a combination of first-person testimony and rich archival footage, SON OF SAM: THE HUNT FOR A KILLER delivers a compelling suspense thriller tracking the investigative moves of the NYPD and New York media in their hunt for a suspect, while providing a platform for the survivors and victim’s families. The two-hour special event, SON OF SAM: THE HUNT FOR A KILLER, premieres Saturday, August 5 from 9-11/8-10c on the #1 true crime network, Investigation Discovery, with additional content available on ID’s TV Everywhere app, ID GO.

No other president in history has embodied the hopes, dreams and aspirations of the American people like John F. Kennedy. His death was the end of a legacy that once held such a promising future. In the years following his death, conspiracy theories and controversy still remain. Eventually, The Warren Committee ultimately concluded that Lee Harvey Oswald acted alone in the assassination of President Kennedy. Despite this conclusion, conspiracy theorist note other affiliations as responsible for JFK’s death.

But what other syndicate could’ve been responsible for the assassination of JFK? Who demonstrated the most animosity towards Kennedy tenure? Why would anybody order the death of such a beloved U.S. President? In order to answer these questions, one must examine who the Kennedy family really was. The family story begins with Joseph P. Kennedy, the father. Joseph, who was also referred to as Joe, was a successful commodity investor who made the bulk of his fortune on Wall Street.

They say that death is in the details, and coroner Graham Hetrick knows this to be true. In Investigation Discovery’s THE CORONER: I SPEAK FOR THE DEAD, Hetrick shares the most compelling homicide cases from his 26 years as the Coroner of Dauphin County, Pa. It’s Hetrick’s job to administer the medical legal death investigation process, enabling homicide detectives to fully reveal the story of how and why someone died. Through complex forensic analysis, he and his team uncover the secrets that every body holds, providing information crucial to solving homicide cases and giving a voice to those who can no longer speak. Hetrick returns with more clues to unravel in the 10-episode second season of THE CORONER: I SPEAK FOR THE DEAD, premiering Monday, July 17 at 10/9c on Investigation Discovery.

Two people with knowledge of how the underworld works recently said they believe Kansas City mobsters were responsible for blowing up Frank “Lefty” Rosenthal’s car in Las Vegas during the early 1980s.

Those people are Gary Jenkins, a former Kansas City detective, and Las Vegas resident and former mobster Frank Cullotta.

First the backstory.

In a scary incident that literally shook parts of the city, Lefty Rosenthal, carrying an order of takeout ribs, was injured when his 1981 Cadillac Eldorado blew up outside the Tony Roma’s restaurant at 620 E. Sahara Ave. not far from the Las Vegas Strip.

Anyone familiar with Facebook has come across the thousands of memes with a famous gangster pose and some intriguing advice about life. Most of this insight was not actually quoted by the mobster themselves it’s solely done to emphasize a point, play up the dramatics or for entertainment purposes only. So, with this in mind I decided to track down some of my favorite all time gangsters and their foresight, insight & gumption for life. (Not everyone on my list is considered a “traditional mobsters/gangster…” then again, my definition of a gangster sometime differs from others)